Casual Wear for Men: What it is and How to Wear it
Smart casual, elevated casual, business casual… casual wear for men seems like a no-brainer until you realize there are so many different ways to describe it and you still have no idea what any of it means.
Most guys that reach out to us will say things like, “I have no idea how to put a casual outfit together,” or “I want to be comfortable without looking like I just rolled out of bed.”
So, let’s break it down by going over the key pieces you want to have in your closet, how to put together an outfit, and walking through a “cheat sheet” of five easy outfit ideas you can consider your go-to’s for casual wear.
WHAT DEFINES CASUAL WEAR FOR MEN?
Simply put, casual wear is defined by items that you wear casually: relaxed and comfortable clothing that is appropriate for everyday wear. In other words, it’s a well-balanced marriage of style and comfort where you don’t have to sacrifice one for the other.
Think about it like this: Imagine a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 represents clothes you wear to the gym and 10 represents clothes you wear when meeting your future in-laws for the first time at a 5-star restaurant. Casual outfits are going to fall somewhere in between.
This includes things like:
Pants: chinos, non-distressed jeans, linen pants, flat front shorts, cargo shorts
Shirts: Pima cotton t-shirts, polos (long or short sleeve with no logos or branding), linen tops, casual button down shirts (long or short sleeve), lightweight sweaters (cotton, linen, merino wool)
Second layers: casual blazers, cardigans, lightweight, structured jackets (bombers, field jackets, racer jackets)
Shoes: sleek leather sneakers in a neutral color (white, black, brown), espadrilles, Derbys, loafers, boots
You’ll want to pay attention to the overall look of the item, too: in the list above, you probably noticed that chunky athletic sneakers weren’t on the list but sleek leather sneakers were. Why is that? Well, imagine a pair of chinos being worn with either Yeezys or a sleek sneaker. Why don’t the Yeezys and chinos look right together? Because the chinos are heading to brunch while the Yeezys are about to do deadlifts.
See the difference?
Suit Supply, KOIO, Farfetch
HOW TO PUT TOGETHER AN OUTFIT
Now that you have your list of clothing items that epitomize casual wear for men, you may be wondering, “Okay, so how in the world do I put together an outfit?”
You need to understand the right style, fit, and colors that work for you as well as where to buy the right stuff, and those are things we can help you with.
Generally speaking, a good rule of thumb is to pair like with like: Casual with casual, formal with formal. For example, most guys will scan the IG account of their favorite influencer, then grab a suit jacket, throw it on with some dark rinse jeans and wonder why the outfit looks… well, weird.
That’s because they’ve tried to pair something formal with something casual. A suit jacket is meant to be worn formally, with matching trousers and sometimes even a vest. A blazer is something you can wear independently with jeans and chinos. Take a closer look and you’ll even notice a difference in the materials: the suit jacket will have a slight sheen while the blazer looks more muted.
The same logic follows for why a shiny pair of Oxfords wouldn’t look right with gym shorts.
Start trusting your instinct on this one. Humans are born with an innate ability to know when something just isn’t right. You may not exactly know why, but it’s loud and clear that your instinct is telling you, “Nope.”
5 EASY OUTFIT IDEAS
Here are five easy outfit ideas that you can consider your go-to’s when thinking about casual wear:
White Pima cotton t-shirt, suede jacket, dark rinse jeans, brown belt, brown chukka boots
White polo shirt, navy chino pants, white leather sneakers
Blue linen button down shirt, white flat cotton shorts, gray suede loafers
Oxford cotton button down shirt, gray chino pants, black driving loafers
Henley shirt, black leather racer jacket, gray jeans, black Chelsea boots
THE ULTIMATE GOAL
Remember, the idea behind creating outfits that fall into the category of casual wear for men is to combine comfort and style without sacrificing one for the other. Keep in mind that scale of 1 to 10 we talked about at the beginning of this article and refer back to the list of clothing that we went over, too.
Using these tips as your guide, you’ll be surprised at how easy it becomes to figure out what is (and is not) working as you start putting your outfits together. And if you feel like you could use a more personalized experience, we’re here to help.
